British Journal of Radiology 75 (2002),568 © 2002 The British Institute of Radiology
Imaging the acutely ill patient: a clinician's guide. By B E Kelly and C S McArdle, pp. xiii+128, 2001 (W B Saunders Company Limited, London, UK) £29.95 ISBN 0-7020-2434-1
F Gardner
This is an excellent vade mecum for all clinicians. It readily fits the pocket of a white coat, covers all the emergency radiology procedures a clinician is likely to require and is reasonably priced. I considered the latter comment for sometime, but I genuinely believe it is correctly priced when I consider the wealth of knowledge encompassed in this well presented book. As with all books, there are a few anticipated shortcomings regarding quality of plain film reproductions (I found it difficult to visualized the pneumothorax in Figure 2.32) and an odd proof reading error in Table 2.3. However, this should not detract from an excellent, authoritative, comprehensive and exemplary guide to the mystery of image interpretation. The annotation was clear and did not obscure the region of interest; the numerous radiological "signs" were explained in detail and the mnemonics were appealing. In short, this is a must for all junior medical staff who would wish to lift the radiation fog of those enigmatic radiographs.
